A/HRC/35/11 immediate obligation to take deliberate, concrete and targeted steps, to the maximum of their available resources, and to move expeditiously and effectively towards fully realizing the right to education.7 7. Girls’ equal right to education is regularly emphasized in the concluding observations on State party reports by human rights treaty bodies, with 46 references on the subject in 2014 to 2015 alone. Diverse special procedure mechanisms have also taken up the issue in their thematic and country reports and communications. In 2015 and 2016, 51 recommendations relating to girls’ right to education were made to States during their universal periodic reviews; 49 were accepted.8 8. In addition to the agendas of the Millennium Development Goals (2000-2015) and the Sustainable Development Goals (2015-2030), numerous non-binding political instruments have recognized the need to ensure girls’ equal right to education, including the International Conference on Population and Development (1994); the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (1995); the Dakar Framework for Action (2000); the Incheon Declaration and Framework for Action (2015); and the United Nations Girls’ Education Initiative. III. Obstacles to girls’ access to education 9. Multiple and intersecting obstacles limit the enjoyment of the right to education by children around the world. While some of these affect girls and boys alike, those highlighted below illustrate specific hurdles faced by girls. A. Gender stereotypes 10. Gender stereotypes about the role of women as relegated to the family sphere underpin all obstacles to girls’ equal access to quality education.9 Girls are often socialized to assume domestic and care responsibilities, with the assumption that they will be economically dependent on men. The stereotype of men as breadwinners leads to the prioritization of boys’ education. Stereotypes often dictate different expectations for boys and girls, such as completion of education and fields of study to pursue. Stereotypes are also perpetuated in school curricula and materials, which often leads to occupational gender segregation, with girls less likely to study and pursue careers in highly valued professional and traditionally male-dominated fields, such as science, technology, engineering and mathematics.10 11. Education can contribute to dismantling harmful gender stereotypes and norms, which have long-lasting and wide-ranging impacts on all aspects of girls’ and women’s lives. 12. El Salvador, Estonia, Lithuania, Slovakia, Spain, Mexico and Equality Now recognized that gender stereotyping was a central challenge to girls’ access to education. Burkina Faso, Cuba, France, Mali, Mauritius, Nicaragua, Slovenia and Defence for Children International emphasized their engagement in awareness-raising initiatives with parents, families, community and religious leaders, and the media with a view to addressing harmful views and beliefs. Georgia and Ireland reported that they had taken specific measures to promote careers for women in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. The United Arab Emirates highlighted the establishment of the Centre for Creativity and Innovation for women and girls, with the aim of promoting equal 7 8 9 10 Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, general comment No. 13 (1999), paras. 43-45. See also A/HRC/30/23. See Committee on the Rights of the Child, general comment No. 20 (2016) on the implementation of the rights of the child during adolescence, paras. 27-28; Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), “Gender stereotyping as a human rights violation” (October 2013), pp. 8-9. UNESCO, Global Education Monitoring Report 2016, p. 34. 3